Ottawa’s Failure Goes Beyond LRT: BENN
Ottawa’s transportation infrastructure is a mess. Can I be any clearer?
The responsibility for this rests primarily with Ottawa City Hall. Toss in a dollop or two of provincial failures. All of which are exacerbated by the National Capital Commission.
It is not just the colossal failure of light rail, which in turn is a subset of the mismanaged overall public transit group. It isn’t just the slalom courses of potholes on our roadways. Or the congestion on major arterials in the middle of the day. It isn’t just the labyrinths that are neighbourhood roadways in the suburbs. It isn’t just the bicycle lanes that start and stop nowhere.
These problems are not additive. They are exponential.
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They are the result of too many factors to list. From planners who approve new subdivision after new subdivision in the outer suburbs, then have the audacity to lecture the residents of those subdivisions on how their reliance on motor vehicles is selfish. All while the powers that be at city hall know full well that OC Transpo hub-and-spoke route designs don’t effectively serve these communities.
They are the result of too many city hall departments that act like silos.
Planners set out visions that do not fully take into account the impact on infrastructure. Who draft bylaws that embed higher densities without knowing what it will cost to service those higher densities. Then disclaim any responsibility when there isn’t enough money or time to keep up with the consequences of the intensification that they promoted.
The flawed road patterns set out by traffic engineering staff, which then leads to stop-gap traffic calming measures, but not necessarily solutions, from traffic management.
The combination of these types of decisions led to the award by acclamation to the person who made the least believable performance in a leading role. To the until recently Barrhaven Councillor for Life and long-time member and eventual Chairwoman of the Planning Committee Jan Harder for her professed shock that residents in her ward faced commutes of an hour-and-a-half in each direction.
Drop into the equation the province that is more than happy to periodically off-load one-time provincial highways on to the municipality. In prime condition, you ask? No. As is. And the municipality just says yes.
Top it all off with a large dose of the reality-denying National Capital Commission. Close a main route into and out downtown from the south. To allow mythical thousands of active transportation users per day. Then to admonish the city for thinking that the Queen Elizabeth Driveway was ever considered a mere roadway for the general use of the public.
The combination of these ill-considered social-engineering-driven, responsibility-denying, one-size-fits-all “solutions” has led to a city that is doing its utmost to impede the flow of people and goods, not optimize it. Not just the drivers and passengers in motor vehicles. Also those who rely on public transit. And those who are fit enough to mount their bicycle to get about. Let’s not forget about those who chose to walk. Heck, even the people who use scooters and skateboards.
How to solve it? It will not be easy. It might not even be possible, largely because of the lack of political courage that it will take to start the process.
The first step is for city council to acknowledge there is a problem. To state out loud that the solutions to the accumulated transportation problems are going to be expensive, and that they are going to take a long time.
To acknowledge that individuals have a better understanding of their needs than the bureaucrats down on Laurier Avenue will ever have. That demanding that the populace change its behaviour patterns over the course of a few years, to suit the current whims of the decision-makers, rather than the more realistic several generations was a naïve mistake.
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The second step is for each and every department manager to acknowledge that they are part of the problem. To acknowledge that change is incremental. That the failure to coordinate departmental activities to ensure that each project is (not just needs to be) part of a big picture, coherent and cohesive solution.
There you have it folks.
A transportation nightmare brought to you by the very people who are tasked with solving the problems they created.
Word is that OLG won’t accept bets that either city council or the senior management down at city hall will take the necessary steps.
Ron Benn, a finance executive, has been a member of the Centrepointe Community Association for the better part of three decades.
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Bravo to you, Ron and to the Bulldog where people are allowed to express their opinions and even display anger towards (dare I say it) stupidity. I am told again and again in my day-to-day travels through life that expressing one’s opinion is no longer permitted in our new age small L liberal society. Further, I am reminded that I must be tolerant with things in life that I might not necessarily agree with. Fair enough. Then please learn to tolerate my intolerance! Poring through this poignant (and intolerant) article was good for my spirits and made for enjoyable Saturday after-dinner reading. Thanks again.
This should be required reading. This IS our City Hall as I see it. And you didn’t have to get to Lansdowne 2.0 to make your point.
I enjoyed your Article, thank you and I agree with you.
Don’t worry, it’s going to be fixed with 15 minute neighborhoods…no need to commute or use public transit. Remember; Live, Work and Play all within 15 minutes. The City of Ottawa is going to make sure that the people of Ottawa will be so disgusted with Public Transit and our roadways that we will be screaming for the 15 minute neighborhoods. They create the problem to push you in the direction they want you to go. Just my two cents.
I agree with your assessment A.E. The compulsion to manipulate is a sad feature in many who seek, but are not fully qualified for, leadership positions.
The minor details of how the subdivision designs that were conceived of and approved by the planning professionals that failed to address so many of the key attributes of the 15 minute neighbourhood? Back to the audacity to lecture those who live in these suburban neighbourhoods about their selfish refusal to embrace the current planning “ism”.
Change comes through evolution or revolution.
Evolution takes time. Over the course of several generations. Each step is incremental. Some steps are off course. Those steps get corrected for, over time. Patience matters.
Revolution spills blood. Lots of blood. Those who espouse change through revolution remind me of the lyrics from the Pink Floyd song Us and Them. “Forward he called from the rear and the front rank died.” Calling for sacrifice by others is an attribute shared by many a coward.
People need to take a look in the rear view mirror from time to time, to see how far we have come, instead of constantly complaining about how far we have to go. Perspective matters.
And to the people who are steering the ship, keep in mind that the course that we are taking was set by you, not by we, the passengers.
Great article! I will argue that there was one person with political courage (and costed plan) to take this on – Catherine McKenney… and unfortunately, the voters said no. So… you get what you get. I also find it interesting that the Mark Sutcliffe seemingly is not on the hot seat for the LRT issues…. He’s been the mayor for 9 months now. I guess it’s not that surprising when a large group of journalists help get him elected and then suddenly aren’t interested in holding him accountable.
That municipal management is broken and a major contributor to the Anthropocene mess is clear. I would like to see national municipal reform driven by environmental best governance practices. I recently submitted a proposal for this urgently needed reform.
Perhaps the author might contact me? .